


The Name of Revenge

by DemiGoddess



Category: Demon: The Fallen, Original Work
Genre: Defiler - Freeform, Demon, Fallen, Fallen Angel, Lamassu, M/M, Mesopotamia, Sumer, Summoning, cryptic, pact
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-04
Updated: 2020-03-04
Packaged: 2021-02-23 10:33:10
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,366
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23010094
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DemiGoddess/pseuds/DemiGoddess
Summary: An ancient king petitions one of the Fallen to liberate his people. Or is it something else...?
Relationships: Ba’Nabu/Ibbi’Sin, king/king
Kudos: 3





	The Name of Revenge

His name was Ba’Nabu. The Amorite king had traveled far into enemy territory, under cover of night, with only a small contingent of his finest warriors. They had to leave their horses at the top of the crevasse, and it took several hours for them to travel the path to the bottom. Strangely, the sound of crashing waves on the cliff face outside got quieter as they descended, leaving them in oppressive, silent darkness.

Ba’Nabu stepped carefully along the narrow stone path. His torch revealed pale, nearly white, stone surrounded on both sides by a yawning abyss of seawater. The only sound was the scuffle of his men’s leather boots. He could feel the prickle of fear touch his heart, like a great sea serpent passing him by in the deep, and knew his men felt it too. The king steeled himself, had his people not stood against the armies of Akkad and Egypt a thousand times? The Amorites would remain. Even the darkness of blackest hell could not snuff out one such as he!

After what seemed like an eternity, the pathway finally gave way to a small, alabaster platform with a small altar, more of a podium really. What manner of god would suffer a temple this small and remote? Of course, Ba’Nabu already knew the answer to that question. Despite the assertions of the Sumerians, who spat on his people called them “too stupid to know grain from dirt,” he was learned. He had uncovered the secret names of the ancient ones. These were the key to Sumer’s prosperity, and soon he would turn their own gods against them!

A ray of moonlight fell down from a hole who knows how far above, shining down upon the altar and the deep blue water beyond it. His men were loyal, but even they looked upon him skeptically as he began the summoning ritual. It was almost a shame to mark up the pristine stone with charcoal, but he persisted. The would-be conqueror showed no sign of the pain he felt as he cut his palm with a dagger, letting a few drops of his own blood fall into the moonlit pool.

Silence followed, and his men started to relax, ready to dismiss this as a fool’s errand and go home. Even the willful Ba’Nabu had allowed a sliver of doubt to enter his mind when, finally, he heard it. The water was moving, splashing gently against the granite walls of the cave, and soon it was joined by a great slithering sound. Some of the warriors drew their weapons, they had faced monsters before, but Ba’Nabu knew better. The king knew they would be slaughtered if they fought the ancient one, but he wasn’t here for glory and bloodshed.

He was here to make a deal.

Ba’Nabu thought he was ready for the creature that emerged, but upon seeing it, his words failed him. It seemed serpentine, but there were also appendages he had no words for. Aspects of the deepest ocean that humans would not cast eyes on for thousands of years. It was huge! But somehow weightless, graceful, seeming to swim even in the open air of the cave. It’s upper body seemed… feminine? How could human words such as that adequately describe the twisted beauty of the thing? The only familiar thing the Amorite king could ground himself with was it’s two glowing red eyes. Looking into them, Ba’Nabu almost forgot he was a king. In its presence, he was a mere human. 

It cocked its head at him, a mundane gesture that seemed utterly wrong coming from such an ancient being. 

“You are not of Sumer…” it said. It’s voice was multifaceted and feminine. It passed over them like a wave, perfectly serene, and yet utterly overwhelming.

Despite the naked terror of his men behind him, Ba’Nabu mustered the strength for words.

“No, ancient one. I am Ba’Nabu of the Mar Tu. I call upon you by the name with which you fell: Tiamat! I come to bargain.” His confidence was bolstered by the fact that he was able to speak at all, let alone utter his prepared statement.

The being, Tiamat, swayed in the silence of the cave, utterly unaffected by the power in his voice. It didn’t speak, as though waiting for him to continue.

“Y-you see,” Ba’Nabu stuttered. He was taken off balance by its lack of response, like swinging a sword forward to meet an enemy’s, bracing for the impact, but meeting only air. “The rulers of Sumer dedicate all of their worldly things to the gods of the sky. No man can claim possession of anything, not even his own deeds! We seek to liberate this--”

“Do not waste my time with the excuses you tell your men.” Tiamat interjected. It wasn’t harsh. Indeed, its voice was emotionless and unwavering. The king knew then that to argue with it or deny it would be as effective as debating the tide. “I deal in truths. Thus, only truth shall you speak in this place.”

Ba’Nabu winced as though cut, but pressed onward. “Then know that I seek to satisfy my dignity. Sumer spits upon us. They call us savage and unlearned. I cannot let that stand.” His men nodded in support, they knew this reason as well. They did not expect what he said next. “I also wish for vengeance… King Ibbi-Sin has wronged me personally. He cast me away like trash. I know your kind can sympathize.”

The other warriors whispered to themselves, growing angrier as they realized that the king they had known as a liberator was pursuing a petty grudge. Their protestations were cut short as Tiamat spoke again.

“You know more than most. I applaud you for that.” Nothing about the demon’s body language indicated that it felt any differently about him. “You have made a miscalculation, however: I know longer care about the pain of the Fall. I have no reason to aid you out of sympathy. I care about truth. The people of Sumer bring me offerings of knowledge to keep my wrath from their soil.”

“I can bring you greater knowledge than that bastard ever could!”

“Ah, the anger of scorned love. This I know well.” For the first time, the creature seemed just a touch amused. “In this case, I know what truth you will show to me. I have not tasted vengeance. I would know of its nature. You will give me all of your memories of Ibbi-sin, and he will never know who was responsible for his fall. You will have your vengeance, but never know it. Your heart will ache, but you will not remember why. This is my price.”

Ba’Nabu was stunned to silence, sinking to his knees. How could this thing demand that of him? He had come prepared with scrolls and philosophical questions to pay with. He hadn’t expected the Fallen before him to cut through him to extract the one price he could not pay.

Or could he?

“If you accept these terms, the salt of my ocean will poison Sumer. Storms will ravage their coast. Their grain and barley will fail. In a few years time they will be unable to put up a fight, and Sumer will belong to the Mar Tu. In exchange, I will know of human vengeance. Do you accept?”

Memories of his youth in Sumer flashed before the warrior king’s eyes. The hope, the love, the hurt. Seeking out his new people and finding acceptance, as well as the means to mend his pain. He was inseparable from his memories of Ibbi-sin. The demon, knowingly or unknowingly, has asked him to give up everything. Ba’Nabu shook his head and stood. He came here for vengeance, and he would have it. The great Ba’Nabu did not back down.

“I accept.”

============

He awoke in a dark cavern. Several warriors surrounded him, guiding him back for wakefulness. They were asking him questions, but he had no answers. They gave him rations and for this he was grateful. As he recovered his voice, he realized something was missing. He hoped they could answer his question.

“What is my name?”


End file.
